NAMM 2021 has arrived, but it looks a little different this year. This year our friends at the National Association of Music Merchants is hosting a virtual “Believe in Music” edition which you can check out here. To kick things off, we’re announcing the newly available finishes for some of our most popular Ernie Ball Music Man instruments, launching throughout the year. Make sure to follow along on our social media channels for all of our product launches and if you haven’t already, sign up for our newsletter for exclusive updates from Ernie Ball Music Man.
SABRE Guitar
The Sabre guitar features an Okoume body, thick maple top, and custom Music Man humbucking pickups, delivering lively, dynamic sound with striking clarity and sustain. Aesthetically, the Sabre is equally compelling. Its bookmatched premium top is adorned with natural binding, which elegantly highlights the raw beauty of the figured maple wood grain. Crafted with a slender, contoured body and slightly wider neck (1 11/16” at the nut), the Sabre guitar provides unmatched comfort and playability. Equipped with a roasted figured maple neck, Schaller locking tuners, a 5-way switch, and Music Man’s super smooth modern tremolo system, the Sabre is truly a player’s guitar. New for 2021, the Sabre is now offered in the Gator Burst finish.
STINGRAY SPECIAL BASS
First introduced in 1976, the StingRay has been revered as one of the most iconic bass guitars in history. The StingRay bass was the first production 4-string bass to have onboard active equalization and remains the flagship of the Ernie Ball Music Man line today. Today, the StingRay bass (now known as the StingRay Special) features lightweight aluminum hardware, elegant and comfortable contours, and a sculpted neck joint for uninhibited access to all stainless steel frets. Through the decades, the StingRay has maintained the same solid roadworthy construction, with a distinct oval pickguard, a 3+1 tuning key configuration, and the ever-popular Ernie Ball Music Man humbucker — all of which combine to produce a look, feel, and sound that’s remarkably unmistakable. New for 2021, the StingRay Special will be offered in 8 new finishes including Amethyst Sparkle, Black, Snowy Night, Raspberry Burst, Smoked Chrome, Speed Blue, Burnt Ends, and Forest Green.
STINGRAY-5 SPECIAL BASS
With its first introduction in 1987, the StingRay5 has become one of the most iconic bass guitars in the industry. With its powerful punchy sound, the added flexibility of additional pickups, and a comfortably contoured body, the StingRay5 satisfies even the most demanding of players. Additional features include a sculpted neck joint for uninhibited access to all 22 stainless steel frets, lightweight aluminum hardware, 4+1 tuning key configuration, and the unmistakable Ernie Ball Music Man humbucker. New for 2021, the StingRay5 Special will feature 8 new finishes including Frost Green, Black, Snowy Night, Raspberry Burst, Smoked Chrome, Speed Blue, Burnt Ends, and Amethyst Sparkle.
CUTLASS RS GUITAR
Based on the original 1970s Ernie Ball Music Man designs, the Cutlass RS has been engineered to deliver unparalleled playability and performance. Featuring a roasted figured maple neck with rosewood or maple fingerboard, an alder body, a super smooth modern tremolo, and an oversized 4-over-2 headstock. The Cutlass RS is offered with either three Ernie Ball Music Man mid-60s style single coils (the SSS model) or a custom wound Ernie Ball Music Man ceramic humbucker with two single coils (the HSS model). From biting lead to crunchy rhythms to classic single-coil tones, the Cutlass has you covered. New for 2021, the Cutlass will feature 2 new finishes including Powder Blue and Vintage Tobacco for both the SSS and HSS models.
STINGRAY RS GUITAR
The StingRay RS features a roasted figured maple neck with rosewood or maple fingerboard. The StingRay retains all original specifications since it was designed in the 1970s, including vintage spec humbucking pickups, a super smooth modern tremolo system, and an off-set lightweight Okoume body. The sound is big and bold when needed but smooth as glass if desired thanks to the perfectly voiced custom pickups. Offering a 3-way switch to access its versatile coil combinations while the StingRay’s oversized 4 over 2 headstock with straight string pull provides superior tuning stability. Fashioned with the flawless craftsmanship you’ve come to expect from Ernie Ball Music Man, the StingRay guitar is the perfect confluence of classic aesthetics and modern design and playability. New for 2021, the StingRay RS will feature 2 new finishes including Powder Blue and Burnt Amber.
BONGO BASS
The Bongo represents everything a modern bass should be: well balanced, comfortable, resonant, and expressive with effortless playability. The double-cutaway basswood body design is of superior construction and along with a 24 fret finished neck offers unimpeded access for high register two-octave fretwork. The Bongo is available with two Ernie Ball Music Man proprietary humbucking pickups, 4 band eq, Neodymium magnets, and 18V active preamp that delivers a powerful combination of unparalleled tonal diversity. New for 2021, we’re offering the Bongo 4 in the all-new Harvest Orange finish.
Follow along with all of our latest releases for 2021 on our Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube channels.
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Daaamn. Why can’t the Stingray bass finishes be available on the guitars? 🙁
Truly remarkable looking lineup for the new year. No doubt maintaining the quality and craftsmanship Musicman has always brought to the market. And at a price most working musicians will agree is a fair trade for the product, outweighing most of the bigger named competitors. My only drawback is that I can’t appreciate much of the products my self being left handed and forced to dwell in either the economic models made over seas or sell my soul to afford a ridiculously overpriced custom shop that by all means should never alleviate from the quality of a standard model. This obviously coming from other companies. Might I also add that your logo features a left handed guitarist as well much to my chagrin.
The stingray with burnt umber with gold hardware would be beautiful
When are you guys going to build new tube amps
No current plans of reissuing the Music Man amps, but it’s possible we may look into that again in the future.
When is the EBMM John Petrucci 8 released?
Stay tuned for a release date!
Any plans on maiking the Prodigy guitar picks in 1.14 or 1.35 mm???
Any plans of releasing the Starry Night finish in a standard size Stingray? I know you recently released a short scale but I really wanted a standard size bass ❤️
If not I may have to go for the Snowy Night 😉
I really like the Harvest Orange and Honey Suckle finishes
No love for the Music Man Sterling basses? It says the red and blue colours are discontinued, but no replacements in sight? :/
No official announcements for new Sterling offerings yet, stay tuned!
I like the colors in the new lineup. But no Classic 4 or 5 string, and no fretless models. Come on EB. What gives?
Thanks! No official announcements for new StingRay Classic offerings yet, stay tuned! There are 2 fretless Bongo models available in the Vault, https://shop.music-man.com/instruments.html. We may look into offering more fretless options in the future!
So you guys discontinued all the other Stingray colors? If so then it’s offered in even less colors now. Bummer because I was about to buy a charcoal sparkle, and didn’t want to pay extra for the burst and the headstock of the smoked chrome.
Our website is advertising that the colors are discontinued only meaning we won’t be producing more of them because we’re releasing new colors this year. However, if you’re looking for a specific color in mind, we can certainly help you out! Please reach out to our customer service team directly at [email protected], thank you!
No new Short Scale Bass for 2021?
Check out the EBMM Vault, https://shop.music-man.com/music-man-short-scale-stingray-bass-blue-magic.html, https://shop.music-man.com/music-man-short-scale-stingray-bass-micro-prism.html, https://shop.music-man.com/music-man-short-scale-stingray-bass-scarlet-red.html for limited ones that were just launched! No official announcement for 2021 standard production offerings yet, stay tuned!
Nice guitars, however I am surprised I don’t see any JP instruments listed on 2021 catalogo, are we really not going to see new majesty finishes o JP15 reléases, or are you just saving them for the last day? God I hope so Namm without new JP models relesease it’s like Mexican food without the spice
This is our NAMM announcement and launches for the Believe in Music event. We will be having other launches for our signature models happening throughout the year so stay tuned!
Why no new St Vincent colors etc, it has been awhile…
Stay tuned for more product launches on our signature models throughout the year!
I’ve been playing the music man for 40 years I love them
Including the music made for 40 years I loved it
5 Star’s 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 The 🌎 World’s Best Of The Best Hands Down Without Question My Only Go To ( Bass’es ) PERIOD !!! I ❤ To SLAP & PLUCK All Day & Night On Your Amazing Bass & I Have Been Playing Bass Over 50 Year’s
No Axis changes or a reissue in memory of EVH?
We currently don’t have plans for a reissue of the Axis EVH but we could in the future. Stay tuned on our social channels for news and product announcements!